Environment & Energy Educational Opportunities For Students & Adults

Opportunities to learn more about environmental and energy issues affecting Pennsylvania for students and adults--

Awards/Recognition

-- Iroquois High School Students Recognized For Removing Nearly A Ton of Litter From Four Mile Creek In Erie County  [PaEN] 

-- Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader: Earth Conservancy Announces Winners Of Pollinator Seed Packet Design Contest

Grants

-- Wildlife For Everyone Foundation Now Accepting Applications For College Scholarships  [PaEN] 

-- Warren Times: Warren County Conservation District Accepting Scholarship Applications

-- Wildlife For Everyone Foundation: Game Commission Seedlings for Schools Program Starts Accepting Orders Feb. 2  [PaEN] 

-- PA Native Plant Society Now Accepting Applications For Grants Supporting Conservation Of Native Plants, Including Student-Led Projects  [PaEN] 

Help Wanted

-- TribLive: How To Become A National Weather Service Reporter In Western PA

Upcoming Events

-- Scientists And Lawmakers Kick Off Winter Salt Week March 25 At PA State Capitol To Tackle Road Salt Pollution  [PaEN] 

-- Republican Herald: Winter Salt Week Offers Solutions To Road Salt Overuse [PDF of Article] 

-- Penn State Extension Water Cooler Talk Webinar Feb. 18 - Road Salt Impacts And Solutions  [PaEN] 

-- Delaware River Basin Commission Hosts Jan. 27 Webinar On New Report On The Impact Of Sea Level Rise On Salinity Intrusion In the Delaware River Estuary  [PaEN] 

-- Penn State Extension Hosts Feb. 16 Funding Conservation Webinar On US Natural Resources Conservation Service  [PaEN]

-- PA Recycling Markets Center Feb. 18 Webinar On Glass For A Sustainable Future, Update On Penn State LionGlass Project  [PaEN]

-- Shale Gas & Public Health Conference -- Our Work, Our Health: Building A Future Beyond Sacrifice To Be Held Feb. 19 In Pittsburgh, Online  [PaEN] 

-- DEP, Delaware River Basin Commission Offering 3-Part In-Person Water Loss Management Workshops For Water System Operators In March  [PaEN] 

-- Penn State Extension Hosts March 16 Webinar On Water Law Basics For Farmers  [PaEN]

-- Register Now For PA Recreation & Park Society Conference & Expo March 24-27 Featuring Keynote Speaker Dr. Dexter Shorter  [PaEN]  

-- Outdoor Business Alliance Of PA Hosting PA Outdoor Economy Summit + Industry Expo April 26-28 In State College  [PaEN] 

-- Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Hosts Winter Artisan 8 Workshop Series Starting Feb. 16 With How To Draw Owls With Local Artists

-- Lehigh Valley-based Wildlands Conservancy Highlights Upcoming Educational Programs And Outdoor Experiences: Winter Bird Walk; Snowshoe With Your Sweetheart; Flying Squirrel Research 

Public Participation

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - January 24 [PaEN] 

-- DEP Posted 61 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In January 24 PA Bulletin  [PaEN] 

-- Concerned Residents Of Western PA To Host Feb. 1 Community Gathering On Proposed Homer City Power Plant And A.I. Data Center In Indiana County  [PaEN]   

-- Reminder: DEP To Host Feb. 3 Virtual Hearing On Water Quality Permits For PA General Energy Shale Gas Access Road, Staging Area Project In Loyalsock State Forest, Lycoming County  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Invites Comments On Individual Stormwater Permit For The 150 Mile Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission, LLC Piney-Seward, Erie South Piney Transmission Line Project Thru 8 Counties  [PaEN]

-- Delaware River Basin Commission Hearing Feb. 4, Business Meeting March 4  [PaEN]

-- DCNR: Schedule Of Presque Isle State Park Complex Advisory Committee Meetings Starting Feb. 19

-- DEP Cancels March 18 Oil & Gas Technical Advisory Board Meeting, Reschedules For April 30

-- Spotlight PA: Lawmakers Move To Close Local Meeting Notice Loophole After Ruling Weakens PA Transparency Law

Programs/Information

-- The Allegheny Front: What Closing The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Means For The Region’s Environmental Reporting 

-- Inquirer Editorial: There Is A Viable Path For Pittsburgh To Save Its Newspaper, Here’s How We Did It With The Inquirer

-- WPIX:  Washington County Opens Nearly 2 Dozen Warming Shelters During Bitter Cold, Major Winter Storm [The Center Of Shale Gas Fracking, Coal Industry In PA]

-- Inquirer: Slavery Exhibits At Independence National Historic Park President’s House Removed In Philadelphia Following President’s Push To Remove ‘Inappropriately’ Disparaging Exhibits 

-- AP: Philadelphia Sues President’s National Park Service Over Removal Of Slavery Exhibit At Independence National Historical Park

-- WESA: PA Residents Should Test For Radon, A Leading Cause Of Lung Cancer; Coal Mines Give Radon An Easy Path To The Surface 

-- The Allegheny Front: Temple University Researchers Hope To Remove PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals,’ Microplastics With Sustainable Treatment Method

-- WHYY - Sophia Schmidt: This Philly Rowhouse Has Seen Over 250 Years Of Energy Transitions: Firewood To Solar

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Federal Mine Safety Research Called Back To Work Wonder: Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

-- Post-Gazette: Washington County Clinic Helps Coal Miners With Black Lung Battle For Crucial Benefits, And To Survive 

-- DEP Chesapeake Bay Healthy Waters News: Gov. Shapiro Leads Chesapeake Bay Executive Council; 2024 Annual Report; Grant & Education Opportunities; Mussel Restoration; County Water Quality Improvement Projects ​​

-- ClearWater Conservancy: Building Our Future Home While Staying True To Our Conservation Mission  [PaEN]   

-- The Allegheny Front: New Project To Study Fire Is An Effort To Get Ahead Of Eastern Forest Wildfire Risks

-- NextPittsburgh: What Happens At A Beaver County Christmas Tree Farm After The Holidays?

-- Reading Eagle: Christmas Trees Find New Purpose Creating Fish Habitat At Blue Marsh Lake Federal Recreation Area

-- WNEP: 30th Anniversary Of Deadly Flood of ‘96 In Pennsylvania

-- Inquirer: Why Sinkholes Keep Opening Up In Philadelphia [Spoiler: Aging Water Lines]

-- Republican Herald: Artist’s Fireflies Burn Brightly At New Penn State-Schuylkill Campus Art Gallery [PDF of Article] 

-- The Allegheny Front: Early Spring Wildflowers Are Blooming Even Earlier Thanks To Climate Change

Winter Storm Fern

-- Gov. Shapiro Signs Disaster Emergency Proclamation To Prepare For Winter Storm  

-- PEMA Encourages Pennsylvanians To Prepare For Weekend Snowstorm

-- PEMA Winter Storm Fern Webpage  

-- PUC Urges Consumers To Prepare Ahead Of Winter Storm Fern And Prolonged Extreme Cold  [PaEN] 

-- PJM Interconnect Issues Cold Weather Alert For Western Region Jan. 23 Expanding To Entire PJM Area Jan. 24-27; Regional Grid Could Exceed Winter Demand Record on Jan. 27 & 30  [PaEN] 

-- WNEP: PJM Interconnection: Winter Storm Will Cause Historic Power Grid Strain That Has Never Been Experienced Before

-- WPIX:  Washington County Opens Nearly 2 Dozen Warming Shelters During Bitter Cold, Major Winter Storm [The Center Of Shale Gas Fracking, Coal Industry In PA]

-- Aboveground Water Pipelines Feeding Shale Gas Drilling Operations Beginning To Freeze Due To Cold Temperatures; Range Resources Incident Reported In Washington County; Notify DEP Of Pipeline Problems  [PaEN]

A.I./Data Centers

-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - January 26  [PaEN] 

-- House Energy Committee Meeting To Consider Bill Giving PUC More Authority To Regulate A.I. Data Centers Moved To Feb. 2  [PaEN]  

-- Gov. Shapiro: Major Utilities, Power Producers, Tech Companies, Experts Endorse Federal/Northeast PJM Governors’ Plan To Meet Surging A.I. Data Center Energy Demands - Will PJM Listen?  [PaEN] 

-- PA House Committees Hearing: Witnesses Agree - A.I. Data Centers - Real And Purely Speculative - Are Driving Up The Cost Of Electricity; Without Effective Action Energy Increases Will Not End   [PaEN] 

-- PJM Interconnect Issues Cold Weather Alert For Western Region Jan. 23 Expanding To Entire PJM Area Jan. 24-27; Regional Grid Could Exceed Winter Demand Record on Jan. 27 & 30  [PaEN] 

-- WNEP: PJM Interconnection: Winter Storm Will Cause Historic Power Grid Strain That Has Never Been Experienced Before

-- WHYY - Susan Phillips: NJ Governor Issues State Of Emergency On Energy Costs; Orders State Regulators To Boost Renewables, Battery Storage In Light Of Rising Electricity Prices

Background On Issues

-- York Dispatch Guest Essay: Republicans Add To The Pain Of Soaring Energy Costs - By Katherine Pichardo, Latino Victory and David Kieve, Environmental Defense Fund Action  [PaEN] 

- The Conversation: America’s Next Big Clean Energy Resource Could Come From Abandoned Coal Mine Pollution, If We Can Agree On Who Owns It 

-- Congress Cut Abandoned Mine Reclamation Funding To PA By $169 Million Canceling Critical Water Quality Restoration Projects  [PaEN] 

-- Spotlight PA: State Budget Constraints, Lack Of Options Force Berks County School District To Rebuild Where Flood Destroyed School

-- TribLive: PETA Proposes Replacing Punxsutawney Phil With Giant Hologram 

Visit the  DEP Calendar of Events;  PA Parks & Forests Foundation’s Events webpage and DCNR’s Calendar of Events for activities happening near you.

Visit DEP’s Teaching Green webpage to learn about more environmental education resources.

Visit the PA Environment Digest Calendar Of Events for more opportunities.

[Posted: January 25, 2026]  PA Environment Digest